2026…What’s Next?

 2026…What’s Next?

We are in 2026!!! It has officially been 9 months of traveling as of today…which means somehow we traveled through the majority of 2025. WHAT. So crazy. We have been reflecting a lot on our travels thus far, especially entering into the new year. It is quite surreal to think about where we started - just two little Americans landing on a regenerative animal farm in far south Chile, sleeping in a sheep shed and working long, physical days. Then to Argentina to work in gardens, experience new cultures, and learn new skills. All the way Peru, getting to broaden our perspectives through new courses such as Yoga, Ayurveda, and Vipassana. After 3 incredible months in Peru, we will be heading north to Ecuador, and it slowly feels like the South American portion of our trip is coming to an end. What a journey; and yet, it feels like just the beginning!                                                             

It has been awhile since I have written one of these posts…they are getting less and less frequent due to our time getting taken up by studying and integrating all the new things we are learning. I am doing my best to keep up with them for all of you reading it as well as for us to have documentation to look back on in years to come. 

After my yoga course, I decided to return to the same location a week later to complete an Ayurvedic course. Ayurveda, for those that haven’t heard of it, is essentially the medical ideology used in India (think Chinese medicine is to China as Ayurveda is to India). I had briefly heard about Ayurveda before, but became even more intrigued about it during my yoga teacher training. It seemed to fit in with my interests around health and healing as well as diving deeper into wisdom that has been around for 3,000 years. What spoke to me even more is that it has similar characteristics to occupational therapy, in that it treats the person holistically - looking at the person, their activities, and the environment. It was a really amazing course full of cooking, massages, yoga, and new friends. I also had the opportunity to teach some yoga classes and practice all that I just learned from the previous course. 

A brief synopsis of Ayurveda:

There are 3 dosha types - Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. Each type is correlated to elements such as earth, fire, water, air/ether. Vata = air/ether, Pitta = fire + water (think lava), and Kapha = earth + water (think mud). Just as everything in the material world is made up of these elements, so are we as humans! We typically have one main dosha type that makes up our consitutation, but at times two or even all three. The main purpose behind Ayurveda is working to improve health in the person by balancing these dosha types using food, daily routine, exercise, and environment. It is a really unique lens to view people and the world in, especially bringing in the theme of connecting humans to the elements and natural world. Connor and I have been integrating the principles of Ayurveda, especially with the food, and have really been liking it and feeling good so far!    

After the course, we have just been hanging out at our volunteer place in Calca, Peru. It’s funny that what started out as a place to stay for 1 month before my yoga course has now turned into 3 months. We have grown to love the place here - the people from all over the world, our private room, the garden, the ducks and chickens, buying delicious fruits from the Saturday market, sharing a bathroom with 6 other men, and getting a nice little shock every time we open the fridge/freezer (apparently appliances aren’t grounded here in Peru). We had a very low key holiday season, just spending time with each other. There were some lights put up in the downtown plaza and some fireworks that went off at midnight on Christmas Eve and New Years Eve, but other than that, it didn’t really feel like the holidays. We have been doing a lot of work in the garden, gaining even more technical skills such as pruning, training, making fertilizer, etc. We have been doing our best to practice yoga (almost) everyday! We are both enjoying expanding our musical and creative hobbies. I am enjoying playing the guitar and singing still, hoping to maybe take some drum lessons in the new year, while Connor has taken up learning the flute (quena - Peruvian flute). It has been an action-packed 3 months here, but we are so grateful for the immense learning and unique experiences we have had. 


We miss and love all our friends and family. Happy New Year!


Con amor,

Abby y Connor 



Back at the Bhakti Yoga School for Ayurveda course 
- me and 3 gals from Austria and Germany

Ayurvedic cooking classes

Restaurant with the Ayurvedic team + Connor


Cacao ceremony at the Laguna




Yoga classes everyday during the course

Some fun partner yoga with the prof

Goodbye Bhakti Yoga School

Our Aflac duck that greets us walking 
to the house each time

Our sunflower Christmas tree

Connor loving his Ayurvedic meals

Christmas potluck prep

Too much time on our hands?? 
Or just creative geniuses…

Coffee date with my love

No massage table to practice on…no problem

Tea time with Yom

New Year’s Eve

New Years chats/reflections

Snoozes on the terrace

Training for our 5-day trek to Machu Picchu 
to end our time in Peru

Hard boiled eggs forever <3

Going to miss these views

The main form of transportation around here
 - motorcycles that have been made into little cabs

Family dinners

Yoga alllll day

Astrology sessions with our host

Fine tuning the art of making ghee

You go boo!




Comments

  1. AnonymousJanuary 7, 2026 at 9:52 AM

    my sissy and BIL are the coolest AND cutest! Love u both! The hard boiled egg pic did send a chill down my spine … 🤢 maybe that’s my kapha within me!

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousJanuary 19, 2026 at 6:03 AM

    Love all the pics and can’t wait to take a yoga class from you 😃

    ReplyDelete

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